There are many methods available which allow groups of individuals located throughout the world to engage in conferences. Such methods generally involve transmitting information and other data from communication equipment located at one conference site to communication equipment located at one or more other locations. A multipoint control unit (MCU) (sometimes referred to as a multipoint conference unit) may be used to couple communication equipment used at the various conference sites, thereby allowing users from distributed geographic locations to participate in a teleconference.
With respect to videoconferencing, a MCU may receive and distribute multiple audio and video signals to and from multiple conference sites. In certain situations, a conference site may not have sufficient equipment to broadcast or display each of the signals generated by the remote conference sites participating in the videoconference. Accordingly, it may be necessary to switch between the audio and/or video signals broadcasted at a local conference site.